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Secret 'X'
Secret "X" is a game based on Tic-Tac-Toe but without the Os, only Xs. Gameplay *The centerpiece of Secret "X" is a large tic-tac-toe board. The middle column of the board contains a secret X hidden in one of its three boxes. To win a prize, the contestant must get three Xs in a row horizontally or diagonally. *The contestant is given a free X to place anywhere they want in the left or right columns of the board. The contestant is then shown two small prizes one at a time, each with two prices displayed. If the contestant picks the correct price, they win the small prize and earn an additional X, which they then place on the board. Once both prizes have been played, the middle column of the board flips over, revealing the location of the secret X. If the secret X completes a string of three Xs in a row, the contestant wins. A winning row of three must include the secret X, and contestants are not allowed to place all three of their Xs on the same side of the board to create a vertical row (although this is no longer explicitly stated). *If the contestant earns no additional Xs, the game is automatically over. However, even if they earn both additional Xs, the contestant can still only form a row with two of the three secret squares and is not assured victory. Strategy *Contestants are often discouraged if they attempt to place an X in the middle row because such a placement can only win with one possible secret X position - the center. The same can be accomplished by placing Xs in vertically-opposite corners; this also allows a third X (if won) to also complete the top or bottom horizontal row, which is not possible with the middle-row placement. History *Secret "X" premiered on September 14, 1977 (#2473D) and was created by former producer Kathy Greco, who was then a production assistant on the show. It premiered on the same day as the now-famous incident involving contestant Yolanda Bowersley's tube top falling when she was called to "Come on Down". On its first playing, contestant Betty Vasquez put the first-ever free "X" in the middle of the left column, so the only way she could win was for the Secret "X" to be in the middle. She then guessed both small prizes wrong and therefore lost right away with no additional "X"s. Bob did, however, reveal the center column to find out where the Secret "X" was, after learning that he had to push a button to reveal not knowing it. On its second playing, the game received its first win. *When the game made its debut in 1977, there were no question marks in the center column; they were added presumably on October 26, 1977 (#2533D). On February 12, 1981 (#3994D) the white parts of the setup became yellow. On October 10, 1986 (#6215D) the clear background of the Secret "X" logo changed to yellow, the white border turned red and the red base became black, also the small prize podiums were also revised completely. The black stripes in the corners were removed on November 4, 2004 (#3034K). The font on the choice prices and the actual prices changed to Kingpin on November 27, 2007 (4102K, aired out of order on November 5). *One notable playing on March 7, 1995 (#9492D) featured some technical difficulties. The machine was stuck as Bob pushed the button, and he called out to Roger Dobkowitz for help, at first trying to get into the black tarp at the back of the board and crank the middle column manually, but did not help. As a result, Bob and Roger turned the board around and looked behind the black tarp at the back of the board to find out where the Secret "X" was. It was on the bottom, and contestant Lisa lost. *On another playing, from December 4, 1998 (#0925K), an error occurred in which the prices - both the choices and the ARP - were reversed on both prizes. After guessing the first small prize wrong and the second one right - and trying to get three in a row on top - everyone realizes the error on pricing the small prizes, and so the only thing to do was to award him the prize, but Bob checked to reveal the center column anyway, and he would not have won since the Secret "X" was in the middle, but he might have put second "X" on the bottom on the bottom right as Bob said it. *Another notable playing, from April 27, 1999 (#1102K), featured contestant Amy Derose who was clueless about the game and tried to get three in a row on the left column. She first placed her free “X” in the middle left, then placed her second on the top left after getting her first small prize correctly. But, she guessed the second prize incorrectly, resulting in an instant loss, but Bob pushed the button to reveal the center column, and the Secret “X” was in the middle. *On February 14, 2014 (#6615K), a trip to Cancun for 22 people worth $33,000 was offered and won. *On March 30, 2016 (#7473K), contestant Gary Miller put his free X in the middle of the right column, effectively meaning that he could only win if the X was in the middle. He won the 2nd 'X' and then Drew went ahead and played out the game for the 3rd X, even though, at that point, it didn't matter where Gary put it. The X was indeed in the middle, and Gary's unorthodox strategy worked. *On May 5, 2016 (#7524K), contestant Erica Green guessed both small prizes wrong. She only had the first X, so she had no chance of winning. The same happened to contestant Floriane Siegel on November 24, 2015 (#7302K), and to contestant Toni Alicante on February 17, 2017 (#7815K), as well as contestant Bryan Kym on March 21, 2017 (#7862K), and to contestant Lily Cao on December 17, 2015 (#7324K). *On October 28, 2016 (#7665K), Secret "X" was played for a cash prize of $15,000, in honor of Price's Big Money Week, and was won. *On November 15, 2016 (#7692K), contestant Ben had correctly guessed both small prizes, but still lost the game, which spoiled a perfect show. Trivia *The most number of times this game was played in any season was 36. *A vertical tic-tac-toe counts as a win on the 1990 computer games released for the PC and Commodore 64, despite it being against the rules on the actual show. *Secret 'X' was one of four "new" pricing games seen on the seventh taping session of Season 36, which was seen on November 27, 2007 (#4102K, aired out of order on November 5), December 3, 2007 (#4111K, aired out of order on November 12), December 14, 2007 (#4125K, aired out of order on November 2), January 9, 2008 (#4133K, aired out of order on January 7), January 17, 2008 (#4144K, aired out of order on January 14), and January 22, 2008 (#4152K, aired out of order on January 29). Pictures Secret.png Secret X 1.jpg|The premiere of Secret "X". Notice the question marks weren't introduced just yet. Secret X 2.jpg|She never had a chance to win at all. Secret X 3.jpg|Here's Secret X with a new yellow paint job and the question marks... Secret X 4.jpg|...and a win diagonally! Tom's Secret X 1.jpg|Here is one from the Tom Kennedy version. Tom's Secret X 2.jpg|This guy lived dangerously. He only had one possibility to win and he got it! Secret X 5.jpg|Here's the current look of Secret 'X' 1996-1997... Secret X 6.jpg|...and another diagonal win. secretx8.jpg secretx9.jpg secretx10.jpg Secret X 7.jpg|Here it is again between 2002 and 2006... Secret X 8.jpg|...and this time a horizontal win down below. secretx1.png secretx-2.png secretx3.png SecretXBCA1.jpg SecretXBCA2.jpg|Another Secret 'X' win the hard way. SecretXBCA3.jpg|And here is the contestant who was a real risk-taker. Premiere Playing (September 14, 1977, #2473D) secretxpremiere1.jpg secretxpremiere2.jpg secretxpremiere3.jpg secretxpremiere4.jpg secretxpremiere5.jpg secretxpremiere6.jpg secretxpremiere7.jpg secretxpremiere8.jpg secretxpremiere9.jpg secretxpremiere10.jpg First Secret 'X' Win (September 21, 1977, #2483D) secretxfirstwin1.jpg secretxfirstwin2.jpg secretxfirstwin3.jpg secretxfirstwin4.jpg secretxfirstwin5.jpg secretxfirstwin6.jpg secretxfirstwin7.jpg secretxfirstwin8.jpg secretxfirstwin9.jpg secretxfirstwin10.jpg First Playing with the Question Marks (October 26, 1977, #2533D) secretx(10-26-1977)1.jpg secretx(10-26-1977)2.jpg secretx(10-26-1977)3.jpg secretx(10-26-1977)4.jpg secretx(10-26-1977)5.jpg secretx(10-26-1977)6.jpg secretx(10-26-1977)7.jpg secretx(10-26-1977)8.jpg secretx(10-26-1977)9.jpg secretx(10-26-1977)10.jpg First Playing with the Yellow Squares (February 12, 1981, #3994D) secretx(2-12-1981)1.jpg secretx(2-12-1981)2.jpg secretx(2-12-1981)3.jpg secretx(2-12-1981)4.jpg secretx(2-12-1981)5.jpg secretx(2-12-1981)6.jpg secretx(2-12-1981)7.jpg secretx(2-12-1981)8.jpg Secret 'X' for a Vaporvette Sport Boat (November 28, 1985, #N 0124) secretxvaporvette1.jpg secretxvaporvette2.jpg secretxvaporvette3.jpg secretxvaporvette4.jpg secretxvaporvette5.jpg secretxvaporvette6.jpg secretxvaporvette7.jpg secretxvaporvette8.jpg secretxvaporvette9.jpg secretxvaporvette10.jpg secretxvaporvette11.jpg secretxvaporvette12.jpg Debut of Secret X's Current Color Scheme (October 10, 1986, #6215D) secretx(10-10-1986)1.jpg secretx(10-10-1986)2.jpg secretx(10-10-1986)3.jpg secretx(10-10-1986)4.jpg secretx(10-10-1986)5.jpg secretx(10-10-1986)6.jpg secretx(10-10-1986)7.jpg secretx(10-10-1986)8.jpg secretx(10-10-1986)9.jpg Secret 'X' for a Mercury Topaz (April 9, 1993, #8775D) secretxmercurytopaz1.jpg secretxmercurytopaz2.jpg secretxmercurytopaz3.jpg secretxmercurytopaz4.jpg secretxmercurytopaz5.jpg secretxmercurytopaz6.jpg secretxmercurytopaz7.jpg secretxmercurytopaz8.jpg secretxmercurytopaz9.jpg secretxmercurytopaz10.jpg secretxmercurytopaz11.jpg Secret 'X' for a Dynasty JetSport Ski Boat (December 9, 1994, #0060N) secretxdynastyjetsport1.jpg secretxdynastyjetsport2.jpg secretxdynastyjetsport3.jpg secretxdynastyjetsport4.jpg secretxdynastyjetsport5.jpg secretxdynastyjetsport6.jpg secretxdynastyjetsport7.jpg secretxdynastyjetsport8.jpg secretxdynastyjetsport9.jpg Secret 'X' for a Plymouth Neon (March 28, 1996, #9914D) secretxplymouthneon1.jpg secretxplymouthneon2.jpg secretxplymouthneon3.jpg secretxplymouthneon4.jpg secretxplymouthneon5.jpg secretxplymouthneon6.jpg secretxplymouthneon7.jpg secretxplymouthneon8.jpg secretxplymouthneon9.jpg secretxplymouthneon10.jpg secretxplymouthneon11.jpg Technical Win in Secret 'X' (December 4, 1998, #0925K) secretxtechnicalwin1998-1.jpg secretxtechnicalwin1998-2.jpg secretxtechnicalwin1998-3.jpg secretxtechnicalwin1998-4.jpg secretxtechnicalwin1998-5.jpg secretxtechnicalwin1998-6.jpg secretxtechnicalwin1998-7.jpg secretxtechnicalwin1998-8.jpg|Wait a minute, Bob just realised something. Both the choices and ARPs are reversed on both prizes. After realising the error, the only thing to do is award the contestant the dining room group. secretxtechnicalwin1998-9.jpg secretxtechnicalwin1998-10.jpg secretxtechnicalwin1998-11.jpg|Oh, and he wouldn't have won, had the error not been caught. secretxtechnicalwin1998-12.jpg A Car Win on Christmas Eve (December 24, 2004, #3105K) secretxcar2004-1.jpg secretxcar2004-2.jpg secretxcar2004-3.jpg secretxcar2004-4.jpg secretxcar2004-5.jpg secretxcar2004-6.jpg secretxcar2004-7.jpg secretxcar2004-8.jpg secretxcar2004-9.jpg secretxcar2004-10.jpg secretxcar2004-11.jpg Last Secret 'X' Car Playing with Bob Barker (May 10, 2007, #3984K) secretxcar2007-1.jpg secretxcar2007-2.jpg secretxcar2007-3.jpg secretxcar2007-4.jpg secretxcar2007-5.jpg secretxcar2007-6.jpg secretxcar2007-7.jpg secretxcar2007-8.jpg secretxcar2007-9.jpg secretxcar2007-10.jpg Final Playing with Bob Barker (May 30, 2007, #4013K) secretx(5-30-2007)1.jpg secretx(5-30-2007)2.jpg secretx(5-30-2007)3.jpg secretx(5-30-2007)4.jpg secretx(5-30-2007)5.jpg secretx(5-30-2007)6.jpg secretx(5-30-2007)7.jpg secretx(5-30-2007)8.jpg secretx(5-30-2007)9.jpg secretx(5-30-2007)10.jpg First Secret 'X' Wipeout With Drew Carey (December 14, 2007, #4125K, aired out of order on November 2 as the first playing with Drew) secretxwipeout2007-1.jpg secretxwipeout2007-2.jpg secretxwipeout2007-3.jpg secretxwipeout2007-4.jpg secretxwipeout2007-5.jpg secretxwipeout2007-6.jpg secretxwipeout2007-7.jpg secretxwipeout2007-8.jpg Secret 'X' for a Trip to the Arizona Cowboy College (April 3, 2009, #4695K) secretxcowboycollege1.jpg secretxcowboycollege2.jpg secretxcowboycollege3.jpg secretxcowboycollege4.jpg secretxcowboycollege5.jpg secretxcowboycollege6.jpg secretxcowboycollege7.jpg secretxcowboycollege8.jpg secretxcowboycollege9.jpg secretxcowboycollege10.jpg Timothy's Big Secret 'X' Mistake (March 5, 2010, #5065K) secretxbigmistake1.jpg secretxbigmistake2.jpg secretxbigmistake3.jpg secretxbigmistake4.jpg secretxbigmistake5.jpg secretxbigmistake6.jpg secretxbigmistake7.jpg secretxbigmistake8.jpg secretxbigmistake9.jpg secretxbigmistake10.jpg Secret 'X' for a $21,615 Trip to Las Vegas (December 6, 2011, #5742K) secretx21615lasvegas1.jpg secretx21615lasvegas2.jpg secretx21615lasvegas3.jpg secretx21615lasvegas4.jpg secretx21615lasvegas5.jpg secretx21615lasvegas6.jpg secretx21615lasvegas7.jpg secretx21615lasvegas8.jpg secretx21615lasvegas9.jpg secretx21615lasvegas10.jpg secretx21615lasvegas11.jpg secretx21615lasvegas12.jpg Secret 'X' for a Scion xB (June 12, 2012, #6012K) secretxscionxb1.jpg secretxscionxb2.jpg secretxscionxb3.jpg secretxscionxb4.jpg secretxscionxb5.jpg secretxscionxb6.jpg secretxscionxb7.jpg secretxscionxb8.jpg secretxscionxb9.jpg Secret 'X' for a 1951 Chevrolet Bel Air (December 5, 2012, #6123K) secretx51belair1.jpg secretx51belair2.jpg secretx51belair3.jpg secretx51belair4.jpg secretx51belair5.jpg secretx51belair6.jpg secretx51belair7.jpg secretx51belair8.jpg secretx51belair9.jpg Secret 'X' for a Nissan Juke (April 18, 2013, #6314K, aired out of order on May 3) secretxnissanjuke1.jpg secretxnissanjuke2.jpg secretxnissanjuke3.jpg secretxnissanjuke4.jpg secretxnissanjuke5.jpg secretxnissanjuke6.jpg secretxnissanjuke7.jpg secretxnissanjuke8.jpg secretxnissanjuke9.jpg Secret 'X' for a $33,000 Trip to Cancun (February 14, 2014, #6615K) secretx33000cancun1.jpg secretx33000cancun2.jpg secretx33000cancun3.jpg secretx33000cancun4.jpg secretx33000cancun5.jpg secretx33000cancun6.jpg secretx33000cancun7.jpg secretx33000cancun8.jpg secretx33000cancun9.jpg secretx33000cancun10.jpg secretx33000cancun11.jpg Abhnab's $15,000 Win (October 28, 2016, #7665K) 15000secretx.jpg 15000secretx2.jpg 15000secretx3.jpg 15000secretx4.jpg 15000secretx5.jpg 15000secretx6.jpg 15000secretx7.jpg 15000secretx8.jpg 15000secretx9.jpg 15000secretx10.jpg 15000secretx11.jpg 15000secretx12.jpg Hasmik Plays Secret 'X' with Jane Lynch (February 21, 2017, #7822K, aired out of order on February 22) secretxjanelynch1.jpg secretxjanelynch2.jpg secretxjanelynch3.jpg secretxjanelynch4.jpg secretxjanelynch5.jpg secretxjanelynch6.jpg secretxjanelynch7.jpg secretxjanelynch8.jpg secretxjanelynch9.jpg secretxjanelynch10.jpg secretxjanelynch11.jpg secretxjanelynch12.jpg secretxjanelynch13.jpg Secret 'X' for a $28,569 Polaris Slingshot (December 18, 2017, #8131K) secretx28000roadster1.jpg Secretx2017.png secretx28000roadster2.jpg secretx28000roadster3.jpg secretx28000roadster4.jpg secretx28000roadster5.jpg secretx28000roadster6.jpg secretx28000roadster7.jpg secretx28000roadster8.jpg secretx28000roadster9.jpg Secret 'X' for a $19,950 Mitsubishi Lancer ES (January 19, 2018, #8175K, aired out of order on February 9) secretxmitsubishilancer1.jpg secretxmitsubishilancer2.jpg secretxmitsubishilancer3.jpg secretxmitsubishilancer4.jpg secretxmitsubishilancer5.jpg secretxmitsubishilancer6.jpg secretxmitsubishilancer7.jpg secretxmitsubishilancer8.jpg secretxmitsubishilancer9.jpg secretxmitsubishilancer10.jpg 11-Year Old Contestant Plays Secret 'X' (March 21, 2018, #8263K) secretxtween1.jpg secretxtween2.jpg secretxtween3.jpg secretxtween4.jpg secretxtween5.jpg secretxtween6.jpg secretxtween7.jpg secretxtween8.jpg secretxtween9.jpg secretxtween10.jpg secretxtween11.jpg Jennifer's Dumb Luck Secret 'X' Win (January 4, 2019, #8565K) secretxjennifer1.jpg secretxjennifer2.jpg secretxjennifer3.jpg secretxjennifer4.jpg secretxjennifer5.jpg secretxjennifer6.jpg secretxjennifer7.jpg secretxjennifer8.jpg secretxjennifer9.jpg secretxjennifer10.jpg secretxjennifer11.jpg Secret 'X' for a $6,063 Ultimate Sleepover Package (March 19, 2019, #8672K, aired out of order on April 23, originally rescheduled to air on March 12) elementarysecretx1.jpg elementarysecretx2.jpg elementarysecretx3.jpg elementarysecretx4.jpg elementarysecretx5.jpg elementarysecretx6.jpg elementarysecretx7.jpg elementarysecretx8.jpg elementarysecretx9.jpg Mother's Day Secret 'X' (May 17, 2019, #8755K, aired out of order on May 10) mothersdaysecretx1.jpg mothersdaysecretx2.jpg mothersdaysecretx3.jpg mothersdaysecretx4.jpg mothersdaysecretx5.jpg mothersdaysecretx6.jpg mothersdaysecretx7.jpg mothersdaysecretx8.jpg mothersdaysecretx9.jpg mothersdaysecretx10.jpg mothersdaysecretx11.jpg Secret 'X' for an $8,087 Ultimate Outdoor Workplace (June 4, 2019, #8782K) secretxoutdoorworkplace1.jpg secretxoutdoorworkplace2.jpg secretxoutdoorworkplace3.jpg secretxoutdoorworkplace4.jpg secretxoutdoorworkplace5.jpg secretxoutdoorworkplace6.jpg secretxoutdoorworkplace7.jpg secretxoutdoorworkplace8.jpg secretxoutdoorworkplace9.jpg Big Money Secret 'X' (October 15, 2019, #8852K, aired out of order on October 18) bigmoneysecretx1.jpg bigmoneysecretx2.jpg bigmoneysecretx3.jpg bigmoneysecretx4.jpg bigmoneysecretx5.jpg bigmoneysecretx6.jpg bigmoneysecretx7.jpg bigmoneysecretx8.jpg bigmoneysecretx9.jpg Veterans Secret 'X' (November 11, 2019, #8891K) veteranssecretx1.jpg veteranssecretx2.jpg veteranssecretx3.jpg veteranssecretx4.jpg veteranssecretx5.jpg veteranssecretx6.jpg veteranssecretx7.jpg veteranssecretx8.jpg veteranssecretx9.jpg Secret 'X' for a $24,330 European River Cruise (December 23, 2019, #8951K) secretxeuropeanrivercruise1.jpg secretxeuropeanrivercruise2.jpg secretxeuropeanrivercruise3.jpg secretxeuropeanrivercruise4.jpg secretxeuropeanrivercruise5.jpg secretxeuropeanrivercruise6.jpg secretxeuropeanrivercruise7.jpg secretxeuropeanrivercruise8.jpg secretxeuropeanrivercruise9.jpg secretxeuropeanrivercruise10.jpg secretxeuropeanrivercruise11.jpg Secret 'X' with Fall Out Boy (January 21, 2020, #8992K) secretxfalloutboy1.jpg secretxfalloutboy2.jpg secretxfalloutboy3.jpg secretxfalloutboy4.jpg secretxfalloutboy5.jpg secretxfalloutboy6.jpg secretxfalloutboy7.jpg secretxfalloutboy8.jpg secretxfalloutboy9.jpg secretxfalloutboy10.jpg secretxfalloutboy11.jpg secretxfalloutboy12.jpg secretxfalloutboy13.jpg secretxfalloutboy14.jpg secretxfalloutboy15.jpg secretxfalloutboy16.jpg secretxfalloutboy17.jpg secretxfalloutboy18.jpg secretxfalloutboy19.jpg secretxfalloutboy20.jpg secretxfalloutboy21.jpg secretxfalloutboy22.jpg YouTube Videos Debut of Secret X (September 14, 1977, #2473D) Bad Playing of Secret "X" (March 5, 2010, #5065K) Secret X for a $33,000 Trip to Cancun (February 14, 2014, #6615K) Category:Pricing Games Category:Active Games Category:Small Prize Games Category:Cash Award Games Category:1970s Pricing Games Category:A Choice of 2 Category:Must be Correct to Continue Category:The Prices Must Match to Win Category:Center Stage Pricing Games Category:Multiple Choice Games Category:Predict the Correct Price Category:Long Play Category:Easy Winning Pricing Games Category:"S" Pricing Games Category:2-Word Pricing Games Category:September Pricing Games Category:Big Money Week Pricing Games Category:The Player is in Command Category:Game of Luck Category:You're Allowed to Earn For Free